Adam Blyth (Aus) Second round Nine-under-par 63 (-9) Total 134 (-10)
I’ve been playing well of late and it was fantastic to see the putts going in today. In the middle of my back-nine, I got hot and went on a birdie run and it was nice to finish off with another birdie on the last. Overall it was a solid round of golf. I’ve been blessed to get a start this week and the opportunity to play. So, I had to make the best out of it. This is my best score on the Asian Tour after all these years and to be able to shoot a score like this on a new course just brings back the self-belief that I can play good golf. I still belong out here. It was a lifestyle change for me last year. I got married, had a baby, moving house. It kind of rocked me a bit with my focus on the golf course. Although I haven’t been played much, I’m very focused on my golf now. I’m balancing my life a lot better than the previous year.

Terry Pilkadaris (Aus) Second round 68 (-4) Total 134 (-10)
It was very windy out there today with lots of cross winds which made scoring difficult. But I played nicely, bogey-free, so no complains. I want to keep going especially when you’re playing well. I kept the momentum going today which was nice and I’m looking forward to tomorrow. A lot can happen tomorrow and it’s important to take it as it comes and see what happens.

Shiv Kapur – Second Round 67 (-5) Total 134 (-10)
Played really well today. Conditions were tough, it was really, really greasy. The conditions were very different to how they were on Thursday. I had really good control over the ball, hit it beautifully all day. It was always going to be tough to make a lot of birdies but I seemed to come out of firing.
I hit just one poor shot all day which was on 14. The bogey that I made on eight, I just misjudged the wind and the ball came up a yard short and plugged in the lip of the bunker. Barring that I didn’t really hit any poor shots so I’m really happy at the way I controlled the ball in the wind. I had the day off yesterday and went to hit a few golf balls and think I found something in my swing I guess. Last week was a long one for me with the playoff and everything. In a way I had to come back today and refocus like the tournament started all over again. It felt like playing two first rounds, not the middle of a golf tournament. I think the rest kind of helped my body because I was feeling pretty tired after last week.

Siddikur Rahman (Ban) Second round 67 (-5) Total 136 (-8)
It was a wonderful day and I also enjoyed a bogey-free round with five birdies. I hit some really great shots and I’m feeling so comfortable on this golf course. I’ve been struggling with my swing but it has stablised and I felt really awesome out there. My short game is also there and I’m feeling very confident for the final round tomorrow. The conditions were tough today as the winds were strong which also made the pin positions challenging. Apart from one birdie in my back-nine, I didn’t have much birdie chances there. But I was in control of my game and did well.

Hung Chien-yao (Tpe) Second round 69 (-3) Total 136 (-8)
It was windy day, at least at least one and a half to two club wind with irons, but with the driver, like on 18, I hit it like maybe 30 almost 40 yards shorter than in the first round.
This is first time I play this course. When I play the practice round, I just feel like I really like it. That this course actually suits me pretty well, because I’m not a long hitter but I can hit it straight. Normally I don’t play too good in India, because the other two Indian courses we play are pretty tough. So, when I came here this is new course for me and then I just feel pretty good. Today’s score, I had three under, feels okay you know. it was a windy, tough day, but I think I can do it a little better than that. On 12 I hit my three wood down the fairway and on the second shot, I had about 118 yards, I just hit it and the ball looks pretty good. And then the guy who was watching it is just like, the ball went in! I’m like, okay, that’s pretty cool.

Gurgaon, India, November 15: Myanmar’s Ye Htet Aung reveled in delight as he fired his career’s best round of six-under-par 66 to trail first round leader Itthipat Buranatanyarat of Thailand by two shots at the Panasonic Open India on Friday.

The first round of the Panasonic Open India resumed at 11am (local time) with players, who were scheduled for the afternoon rounds on the opening day, beginning their challenge at the Classic Golf and Country Club.

Aung was among the 66 players to tee off and he got off to a blistering start with four birdies in his first five holes.

He then mixed his card with a bogey on the par-four four and another three birdies on holes 18, two and seven to share second place with Australia’s Terry Pilkadaris and Indonesia’s Danny Masrin, who completed his first round on Thursday.

Pilkadaris rediscovered his magic touch with his putter as he made just 27 putts to return with a 66 to also stay close to the Thai leader.

Karandeep Kochlar was among the nine Indians bunched in tied-fifth after signing for a 67.

In view of the weather conditions, the Panasonic Open India has been reduced to a 54-hole event.

A four-tee start has again been scheduled for the second round on Saturday so that it can be completed in time for the third and final round which will be played on Sunday.

Did you know?

• Ye Htet Aung’s best finish on the Asian Tour came in the 2017 Indonesia Open where he finished tied 18th.
• During the last four seasons, he has been playing on the Asian Development Tour (ADT), where his best result was a tied-13th in the Boonchu Ruangkit Championship in 2016.
• Aung earned his card for the 2019 Asian Tour season by finishing tied-28th at the Qualifying School last December.
• Terry Pilkadaris has played on the Asian Tour since 2002 and has won three career titles: the 2004 Crowne Plaza Open and Sanya Open, and the 2005 Brunei Open.
• The Australian also had his best two seasons in 2004 and 2005 when he finished fifth on the Order of Merit on both occasions, and he has never finished outside of the top-60 since that time.
• Pilkadaris best result in so far in 2019 is a tied-sixth at the Sarawak Championship in August and he currently sits in 47th place on the Order of Merit.
• Karandeep Kochhar has posted one top-10 finish on the Asian Tour in 2019, a tied-10th at the Yeangder TPC in September.
• He has also posted four top-10 finishes in 2019 on his home tour, the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI).
• At the 2017 Panasonic Open India Kochhar recorded his best Asian Tour result to date by finishing tied-second, three shots behind the winner.

Ends.

Itthipat Buranatanyarat (Tha) First round 64 (-8)

Today’s one of those rare occasions where I play in a four-tee start. I think the only other time when I played like this was during the ADT. But it was okay. I just needed to wear a mask and apart from that, it was business as usual. There was a long wait and it was almost after four hours that I got to tee off. I fell asleep once during that wait. I couldn’t really see where the ball was beyond 250 yards as I’m short sighted so I had to rely on my caddie’s advice. But overall, it was okay. I managed to play well despite everything and I’m very proud of myself.

Ye Htet Aung (Mya) First round 66 (-6)
I kept all distractions out and was solely focused on making good shots today. I tried to hit the fairways and greens. And whenever I had the chance, I would try to make birdies. I’m really happy as this is possibly my lowest round I had on Tour. I’ve been playing well. I had a good rest and day off yesterday, so I was feeling very refreshed and was really excited to get my round going today.

Terry Pilkadaris (Aus) First round 66 (-6)
It’s just the way it is and you just have to deal with it. I want to keep playing as it’s going well. I putted nicely today which was my nemesis all year, really. I made a couple of changes in my putting this week. I found some footage back from 2010, studied it and managed to roll some nice putts. Visibility was not too much of a problem for me. I could see where I hit the ball. Every hole’s going to be important and I’m looking forward to playing well again.

Karandeep Kochar (Ind) – First Round 67 (-5)
I’ve been hitting the ball well here, coming off a good week also in Chandigarh. So hopefully we can finish 54 holes, let’s see. At Chandigarh, had a similar round, created chances there too. Overall, despite some missed putts today, there was nothing wrong with my decision making. I hit the putts exactly like I wanted to, it’s just that the ball didn’t do what I thought it would do but I can live with that. Hopefully I can make some more putts tomorrow. If I keep hitting the ball like I am now I’ll give myself some more chances of doing well here over the next two days, hopefully make some more putts. Let’s see where it gets me because I’m keen to keep my Asian Tour card.

Danny Masrin (Ina) First round 66 (-6)

It’s not usual to start my round in the middle of the golf course and I just take it as it is because I know the tournament organisers have to do whatever they can to get the tournament going. It turned out to be alright as I birdied that first hole and hit some good iron shots today. I managed to judge the rough pretty well today and made a few putts. The weather conditions didn’t really play up too much on my mind. It is what it is and I just played one shot at a time. We are in this together and trying to see where our balls end up.

Shiv Kapur (Ind) First round 67 (-5)

Mental adjustment after long wait in the morning uncertain start: Obviously unnerving, but don’t think it’s the first time this has happened. Have played golf enough to know this can happen, like the Singapore Open where you do a lot of sitting around or the Maybank when there is a lot of waiting during the rain delays so it’s kind of similar.
We all managed to entertain ourselves quite well in the morning, Jeev, Jyoti, Arjun, myself, Siddharth Semwal was doing card tricks for us, and was quite an entertaining morning. We made the most of it but when but obviously when it’s time to play you have to get ready and it is an adjustment. At such times, it is tough to get into any kind of rhythm and into any kind of frame of mind but they did a good job of keeping us informed on the delays, there wasn’t much uncertainty.

Ben Geyer (Usa) First round 68 (-4)

It was nice to get the full 18 holes done. The weather was not playing on my mind as all I really wanted to do was to play good golf. Depending on what happens, every hole is going to be very important and you just have to do as good as you can on every hole you play.

Gurgaon, India, November 14: Thailand’s Ittiphat Buranathanyarat took advantage of his short nap while waiting for play to begin by firing an opening round eight-under-par 64 to surge to the top of the leaderboard at the US$400,000 Panasonic Open India on Thursday.

The first round of the Panasonic Open India was delayed by slightly more than four hours due to weather and visibility conditions. Only players from the morning session managed to tee off with tournament organisers opting for a four-tee start to make up for the lost time.

Players from the afternoon session are scheduled to start their rounds at 11am (local time) on Friday morning at the Classic Golf and Country Club.

An energized Ittiphat shrugged off any weather concerns by opening with two consecutive birdies in his opening sixth and seventh holes. He then went on a five-hole birdie blitz starting from the par-four 13 before dropping his only shot of the day on the first hole.

The Thai responded quickly with an eagle-three on the third hole before two more birdies on holes six and seven soared him atop the leaderboard where he would eventually take a two-shot lead over Indonesia’s Danny Masrin.

Masrin, who is searching for his maiden Asian Tour victory this week, returned with a bogey-free 66 while in-form Shiv Kapur of India signed for a 67 for a share of third place with American Ben Geyer a further shot in tied-eighth place after he returned with a 68.

Did you know?

• Ittiphat Buranathanyarat of Thailand won the Boonchu Ruangkit Championship in January this year on the Asian development Tour (ADT).
• As a result of this win and two other ADT top-10’s, Ittiphat is currently ranked third on the ADT Order of Merit.
• Ittiphat has also won two other events on the ADT, The Players Championship in 2016 and the 2015 ICTSI Sherwood Hills Classic.
• Ittiphat’s best Asian Tour result this year has been a tied-sixth finish at the Sarawak Championship in August, which is also his highest-ever finish on the Asian Tour.
• Itthipat turned professional in 2014 and earned his 2019 Asian Tour card after finishing third at the Qualifying School last December.
• Danny Masrin topped the Order of Merit on his domestic circuit twice in 2016 and 2018.
• The Indonesian best result on the Asian Tour this season was a seventh-placed finish at the Yeangder TPC in September.
• After playing on the Korn Ferry Tour and Mackenzie Tour Canada the last few seasons, Ben Geyer secured his Asian Tour card for the 2019 season by finishing tied-13th and the Qualifying School last December.
• The American has made four cuts out of seven Asian Tour events this season, and his best result so far has been a tied-37th at the Yeangder TPC in September.
• His best career finish has been a tied-second at the 2015 The Great Waterway Classic on the Mackenzie Tour Canada, and he also has three other top-10s on that Tour.

Gurgaon, India, November 13: India’s Jyoti Randhawa will hit his career milestone on the Asian Tour when he tees up for his 300^th event on Tour at the US$400,000 Panasonic Open India which starts on Thursday.

Randhawa turned professional in 1994 and has since gone on to win eight titles on the Asian Tour.

One of Randhawa’s finest seasons came in 2002 when he topped the Asian Tour Order of Merit to be crowned Asia’s number one then.

While Randhawa’s last Asian Tour victory dates back almost a decade ago, the 47-year-old is still feeling the fire in his belly and holds the belief that he can return to the winner’s circle again.

Bangladeshi Siddikur Rahman, who finished runner-up on three occasions at the Panasonic Open India, remains ever hopeful of making it count at the Classic Golf and Country Club this week.

Argentina’s Miguel Carballo will be seeking his second win of the season following his breakthrough in Indonesia in September.

The Argentinian believes his growing confidence has given him the belief that he can tackle the challenging demands of the new host venue of the Panasonic Open India.

Did you know?

• Jyoti Randhawa once reached a career high of 70^th place on the Official World Golf Ranking in March 2008
• Out of his eight Asian Tour victories, five of them have come from home. Randhawa has also captured the titles of five National Opens, with three Indian Opens, one Thailand Open and one Singapore Open.
• Randhawa enjoyed his best finish of 2019 in Thailand last week when he finished tied-14^th.
• Randhawa enjoyed a memorable year in 2004 when he won the season finale Volvo Masters of Asia and finished second on the Order of Merit with US$351,709.
• Siddikur Rahman enjoyed his best result of the year so far at the recent Mercuries Taiwan Masters where he finished tied-fifth.
• Twice a winner on the Asian Tour, his first win came at the 2010 Brunei Open and he followed it up three years later with another win at the Hero Indian Open.
• Siddikur also has 10 second or tied-second finishes on the Asian Tour, three of which has come at the Panasonic Open India (2012, 2015 and 2018).
• The Bangladeshi’s best year on the Asian Tour was in 2013 when he finished fourth on the Order of Merit with over US$495,000 in earnings, and he was also in the top-ten in 2010 and 2011 when he finished seventh and eight respectively.
• Miguel Carballo of Argentina won his first Asian Tour title at the Bank-BRI Indonesia Open in September this year.
• He also has two recent wins on the Asian Development Tour (ADT): the Singha Laguna Phuket Open in May this year and the Ciputra Golfpreneur Tournament presented by Panasonic in 2018.
• Before joining the Asian Tour Carballo also notched two wins on the Korn Ferry Tour and one on the European Challenge Tour.

Ends.

Jyoti Randhawa (Ind)
Well you know what, it doesn’t seem that long. I remember my first tournament and 300 feels a long time, but it doesn’t feel that long. I’m just feeling great and having played so many events. It’s surprising to me also. I didn’t realize it. The highlights? Winning the Indian Opens was good, because you know, you’re a local boy and you are able to win in your own country. I won three of them actually. First one was special, this golf course it was. Then after it was Singapore, Japan, Thailand. So yeah, it’s been it’s been a long, long time. This week I just need to hit it long and putt straight. This is what this golf course needs. So, hit as far as you can and make those putts. The best years on the Asian Tour was when I won the Order of Merit in 2002, and also in 2000. I won two events, I won the Singapore Open and the Indian Open in the same year, 2000, and then I won the Order of Merit in 2002 I think if I’m not off. Yeah, those were the good years. I have a lot of good memories.

Siddikur Rahman (Ban)
I always have fond memories of the Panasonic Open India. This is a very good golf course. I’m really excited and ready for this. I know this golf course very well as I’ve played here several times since my amateur days. I’ve many good results here. This is not a very long golf course and since my accuracy is quite sharp lately, I feel I can take advantage of it. I just want to play well this week and hope for the best. Hopefully, it’ll be my week and I don’t end up finishing second again.

Miguel Carballo (Arg)
I feel like it’s easier to play this course than six weeks ago when we were here. The rough were thicker the last time but the conditions are better now. I’m not really bothered by the weather. I’m okay. Life has been good since that win in Jakarta. I’m playing in bigger and more events now and the confidence has been growing. I’m just trying to juggle the logistics of flying all the way to Asia from Argentina and maybe looking at possibility of making my base in either Thailand or Malaysia.

Gaganjeet Bhullar (Ind)
I’ve never won so far in India and last year was really good when I got my first European Tour win in Fiji. This year I started off really well but the second half on the European Tour was not as good as I was expecting. But right now I’m feeling good, the body is feeling good and I’m hitting the ball well. I’m playing on this golf course after a gap of 10 years. Last time I played here, I shot 22-under and I lost the tournament by ten shots! It is a great golf course and I’m feeling confident to play well this week.

Shiv Kapur (Ind)
I’ve had a lacklustre season thus far. Last week, was at a golf course where I’ve had success in the past. Two years ago Gaganjeet and I tied for second place there and obviously I had my first Asian Tour win there. So anytime you go to a golf course where you’ve had some success, it gives you a lot of confidence. And hopefully, I can carry that confidence that I gained last week into this week. It was obviously disappointing not to win but standing on the 14th tee in the final round, I was five or six shots back. So, didn’t really think I had a shot. So to even get into the playoff was a bonus.

Khalin Joshi (Ind)
I haven’t had the best of the year so far. But finally, I’m finding some form in my game. The win last year at the Panasonic Open obviously helped me. I have to every event this year but haven’t really capitalised on all the opportunities, but looking forward to starting it from this week. The game is feeling good so looking forward to having a good week and finishing the year on a high. I have played well on this golf course throughout my career – be it junior, amateur or professional, so I have good memories of this course. I really like the track so I’m looking forward to gaining some confidence. Overall this course really suits my game.

Rory Hie (Ina)
I really enjoy being in India, interacting with the people here and the culture. I love learning from players like Gaganjeet, Shiv, Jeev. I feel I have been learning a lot since my win here. I have got into events that I normally wouldn’t have gone into without the win and getting to play with good golfers and good courses. The course is definitely playing different than six weeks ago. You can now actually see the ball from fifty yards out and it seems to be a really good condition.

Lopburi, Thailand, November 11: The 2019 Asian Tour season will reach its climax at the Thailand Masters which is set to be played at the Phoenix Gold Golf and Country Club next month.

The US$500,000 full field Asian Tour event will draw the curtains on what has been a truly memorable season where Tour players have continued to create an impact both in the region and globally.

Having already played host to several events on the Asian Tour, the Phoenix Gold Golf and Country Club is set to roll out the red carpet to the region’s finest players again with the tournament being held on their Mountain and Ocean Course from December 19-22.

The Thailand Masters is promoted by the Jaidee Foundation which Thai golfing legend Thongchai Jaidee oversees.

Using his legendary status and tournament golf as a vehicle, Thongchai, who recently celebrated his 50th birthday, hopes to draw attention to his foundation which was launched in 2009.

The foundation’s aim is to help under-privileged golfers in his hometown of Lopburi as well as pave the way for aspiring talents to follow in his footsteps.

A strong advocate for the development of golf in the region, the 50-year-old Thai holds an unprecedented three Asian Tour Order of Merit crowns and has hosted three successful editions of the Thongchai Jaidee Foundation tournaments on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) along with the Foundation’s inaugural collaboration with the Queen’s Cup held last November.

“I’m always looking for ways to give back to the game which has brought me so much success. I hope we can unearth future talents from the Asian Tour through the staging of the Thailand Maters. I’ll be extending invitations to 25 selected players from around the world to add strength and depth to the field,” said Thongchai, the 13-time Asian Tour winner.

Ends.

About Asian Tour
As the official sanctioning body for professional golf in Asia, the Asian Tour leads the development of professional golf across the region, enhancing the careers of its members while maintaining a commitment to the integrity of the game. The Asian Tour, through its membership of the International Federation of PGA Tours, is the only recognised pan-Asian professional golf tour in Asia. The Tour is officially recognised by the Official World Golf Rankings and provides its events with valuable ranking points for participants to be recognised on the world stage. Tour Partners include Rolex (Official Timekeeper), Panasonic (Official Consumer Electronics), Habitat for Humanity (Official Sustainable Development Partner), Titleist (Official Web Partner), FootJoy (Supplier), Wall Street Journal (Official International Media Partner) and Sentosa in Singapore, Home of the Asian Tour which also has an office in Kuala Lumpur. The Tour is an affiliate of The R&A.